There is a natural division within the gaggle of children in our CrossFit Kids classes. They generally divide by friendships, which tend to be consistent with age. Given the very broad age range we suggest for a CrossFit Kids program (5 to 12), dividing into groups makes sense as it keeps friends together.

Often for the WOD, we end up with an A group and a B group, offering two versions of a workout to engage both age groups. This is repeated with the game, where two versions are offered, one of which is designed to challenge the older and often more capable kids. However, as our CrossFit Kids class grew in size, we began to see the need to divide the group more formally by age to optimize the time with both.

The Preteen Class (ages 10 to 12) acts as a bridge between the CrossFit Kids Class and the Teen/Advanced Class. Although many preteens are beginning to feel they no longer belong with younger kids, they are usually not ready for the emotional and social context of the Teen/Advanced Class. That bears repeating: for optimum success—and CrossFit is all about optimization—putting a child younger than 12 into the Teen Class should be done with extreme caution and definitely only after discussion with both the child and the parents. In addition to being socially and emotionally immature for the Teen/Advanced Class, many 10-12-year-olds are not yet physically prepared.

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Lisa Bakshi is a 2nd grade teacher in San Diego, California. She has been CrossFitting for a few years, and recently introduced CrossFit Kids workouts to her class. She has seen a statistically… Continue Reading

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